Mebius World Online – Mari’s VRMMO Diary, Embarking on a Laid-back Adventure as a Novice - Chapter 7
1-7. Mari-ane, the past, younger siblings, and the future
“By the way, where is this?”
After we both had a moment to calm down, I asked again.
Despite the shocking revelation of five years later and the thoroughly grown siblings, I had set aside the matter for now. The room we were in now was spacious, white, and immaculate.
Is this some kind of VIP room in a hospital? I’ve never seen one like it.
However, for a hospital room, it was strange that there were no other people around, and there was none of the typical chemical smell.
While pondering about that, the revealed truth was far beyond my imagination.
“Onee-chan, this is our new home! And this room is your room!”
“Huh?”
No, wait a minute. I’ve lost count of how many times today I’ve asked for a pause.
A new home? I don’t understand.
“What do you mean, a new home?”
“We bought it!”
“Hhaa!?”
During the five years when I was unconscious, did the value of things change?
Even so, a home isn’t something you can casually buy, right?
Moreover, it’s been five years, and both my brother and sister should still be minors.
Calm down, me.
It’s too early to panic… Ignoring the feeling that it’s too late to panic!
“You bought it, but what about the money? How much was it?”
“The money is, of course, mine! It wasn’t that expensive because it was second-hand. I think it was about 300 million yen! Oh, and I said ‘home,’ but it’s more precisely a whole apartment building!” (2.112.975 USD)
“A 300 million yen, entire apartment building…”
I felt like I was about to lose consciousness at the staggering amount.
Actually, it would have been easier to believe if he had said it was a lie, but the words that came from Masato’s mouth were the opposite.
“You might find it hard to believe, Mari-neechan, but it’s the truth. The fact that Maki has enough money to buy an entire apartment building is real. Honestly, there are still times when I can’t believe it myself.”
Ah, Masato’s eyes seemed to be looking somewhere distant.
He must have been shocked just like me.
“But how did you get that much money?”
It’s different from a child’s allowance.
I was struggling every day just to earn one ten-thousandth of that.
“Mari-neechan worked for us from morning till night, and she even gave us pocket money. Maki saved all of that. And six years ago, according to Mari-neechan’s sense, from a computer left behind by that bastard father years ago, Maki seems to have continued studying stocks. To make things easier for Mari-neechan. She studied and traded from morning till night. She apparently made some mistakes, but she steadily increased her capital, and before she knew it, she had enough to buy an apartment building. Now she’s a bit of a celebrity in the stock world.”
“Maki…”
In my solitary room, she had been thinking of me like that.
More than the money, I was moved to tears by that sentiment.
My older sister’s tear ducts were loosening up like crazy.
Before the pillow got wet, Maki gently wiped away my tears with a handkerchief.
“I’m sorry it took so long, Onee-chan. And, thank you for everything so far. I didn’t have the courage to meet you face to face, but through the door, I could talk to you, and it was clear that you believed in me.”
Saying that, she showed a very cute smile.
Both Masato and Maki are truly the best.
“Hey, I was worried too, but have I ever been thanked? By the way, wasn’t it me who deposited the pocket money Mari-neechan gave you and helped with the procedures?”
“It’s because Masato-niisan is a handy big brother.”
“How rude!?”
Their straightforward exchange felt just like when Mom was around.
It really felt like I had gone back in time.
The tears that flowed anew were now wiped away by Masato.
“No need to worry about money anymore! From now on, I’ll be the one supporting the family!”
Maki’s declaration was accompanied by eyes filled with a dazzling determination.
Are you watching, Mom?
Maki is going to be okay now.
Masato has also become a fine person.
I wonder if I can say that I did my best?
Can I believe that I fulfilled the promise with Mom?
As I thought about this, drowsiness suddenly came over me. Slowly letting go of consciousness, I kept the images of my precious younger brother and sister in my eyes.
The next time I woke up, the date had already changed, and it was morning.
Although my consciousness had returned, just to be sure, I decided to undergo tests at the hospital.
As I tried to change out of my nightclothes, my arms trembled and wouldn’t move. Come to think of it, I was the post-bedridden me now.
The sensation of five years passing was absent, so I couldn’t help but be bewildered as I tried to move as I did before.
In the end, Masato changed my clothes, and Masato took me to the hospital.
It seems Masato got his license right after turning 18 for this day, and he was very enthusiastic.
He was so enthusiastic that I was worried he might cause an accident, but I didn’t say anything, feeling it would be wrong to dampen his spirits.
Perhaps because it was early, there were few people waiting for examinations, and we were able to go through the examination smoothly.
I was scanned by a large capsule-shaped machine, had blood drawn, and went through a thorough questionnaire, but the results didn’t seem to show any particular issues.
However, my muscle strength had significantly deteriorated over the five years, and they said it would take quite some time for rehabilitation.
I was prepared, though, as I couldn’t even get out of bed on my own, let alone walk.
Returning from the hospital, carried by Masato back to bed, I asked them something that had been on my mind.
“Speaking of which, is today a weekday? Especially Masato, what about school?”
“It’s a weekday, but both Masato and I are doing high school through correspondence, so it’s fine.”
“Doing it through correspondence… Masato, you’re 18, so you should be in your third year of high school. What about your future plans?”
“Same as high school, I’ll be doing correspondence at a university. I want to become a physical therapist.”
“A physical therapist?”
“In simple terms, someone who helps with the rehabilitation of people whose physical functions have weakened due to injuries or illnesses. In a different way from Maki, I want to support Nee-san.”
A sincere statement, spoken straight to my eyes.
If someone suddenly says something like that, the big sister is bound to feel a flutter in her heart.
“Masato… But, don’t you need practical skills for that kind of thing? Aren’t there limits to what you can do through correspondence?”
“Nowadays, VR has advanced, and most practical training can be done at home if you have the equipment. Besides, even direct hands-on training can be cleared by me, as I’ll be in charge of Nee-san’s rehabilitation.”
“Saying cool things, but I’m the one paying for Masa-nii’s tuition, you know?”
“Ugh!”
Masato groaned like a boxer who had received a good body blow, grinning at Maki’s teasing.
“Hehe, you two get along well.”
“No, we don’t! The ones getting along are the three of us!!”
As she hugged me and rubbed her head against mine, her neatly tied twin tails swayed like a dog’s tail.
I need to work hard on rehabilitation so I can pat her head soon.
Starting rehabilitation, six months passed.
During the first two weeks, Masato carefully stretched my muscles to avoid surprising the stiffened ones.
Although the stretches varied and were performed several times a day, it was unexpectedly tough.
Even though it was indeed just stretching, and the content was relatively light, it felt like a hardcore workout to me. After each set, I was so exhausted that my soul seemed to leave my body.
By the end of the two weeks, I had improved quite a bit, and the feeling that my heart would explode diminished.
However, the real struggle began after that.
Despite working hard on rehabilitation with Masato’s support, my body didn’t become as mobile as I had hoped.
The results after six months were modest, as I could raise my arms and legs a bit, but walking or lifting heavy objects remained as distant goals.
Masato found it strange, and Maki was worried, so we went for another examination at the hospital. Unexpectedly, the results revealed that the signals from the brain to move the body were much weaker than in a regular person.
The cause was unknown.
However, it seemed that the nerves were not cut or narrowed.
So, anomalies weren’t detected in the scans.
But I was told that the rehabilitation period to move normally would be longer, and there was uncertainty about how much recovery was possible.
Upon hearing this, everything seemed to go dark before my eyes, and I felt like giving up on everything.
Rehabilitation was painful and difficult.
In the past, I would have been determined to recover at all costs for the sake of my younger siblings.
However, now that Masato and Maki have become admirable and there’s no longer any need to worry about our livelihood, I couldn’t find a reason to strive for myself.
With this body, I can’t do anything for the two of them.
If anything, I might be a burden.
This feeling had been hidden in my heart throughout the six months.
The “Urashima Taro” state of being lost for five years was only fueling these thoughts.
Ah… my heart feels dark and heavy.
I couldn’t do anything about the feeling of sinking endlessly into despair.
One week has passed since the test results.
I continued with rehabilitation, but the sunken feelings didn’t easily resurface, causing concern for both Masato and Maki.
I’m a useless older sister.
Trying to change my mindset, I made an effort to behave cheerfully and work hard on rehabilitation, but the results didn’t show significant improvement in the examination six months later. I was once again plunged into the harsh reality with an uncertain future.
Is it my fault that I ended up with this body?
Maybe… I’ve thought about that more than once or twice.
Yet, I could endure because Masato and Maki were there for me.
So, I can still hold on without giving up.
But for how long?
Until when do I have to keep pushing myself?
In such a way, slowly but steadily, my heart continued to decay from within.
At that time, when my heart was deteriorating, Masato told me, “Take a break and play a game or something,” and handed me the MWO.
In the gaming world that I started without much enthusiasm, I interacted with people other than my siblings for the first time in a long while.
In reality, it was with a resident of the MWO world and an adventurer named Roulette.
But even so, I talked, interacted, helped, and was helped.
It was fun… yes, I found it enjoyable.
I was able to find something in my heart that made me feel that way.
And when I realized that, what I wanted to do was…
***
“”…!””
In my half-awakened state, I heard someone calling me.
Turning my gaze to the source of the voice, there was Masato, and there was Maki.
“Mari-ane!”
“Onee-chan!”
They both seemed somewhat flustered, and I wondered if something had happened.
“…What’s going on, both of you?”
“What’s going on? It’s not that! We got worried because you didn’t respond when we called you for dinner!”
“Yeah! You were staring at the ceiling without moving at all!!”
Ah, that’s certainly something to be worried about, or rather, it’s frightening.
I chuckled, and for a moment, both of them looked surprised, but they quickly turned it into a smile.
“How was MWO, big sis?”
Asked by Maki, I remembered the events in MWO that happened in just one day and answered with a smile.
“It was fun. There’s a lot I want to talk to you two about.”
That day, the three of us talked about MWO until late into the night.